Kane helps Canada improve to 3-0 at World Juniors
Talk about making the best of a second chance.
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When Evander Kane of the Vancouver Giants got the call last week to join Team Canada as an injury replacement for Dana Tyrell, he knew he was getting a special opportunity. So far, he is making the best of it.
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Kane scored an insurance goal that helped seal a 5-1 win over Germany at the World Junior Championships in Ottawa on Monday.
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It was a big goal for Canada, who faced their toughest test of the tournament to date.
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“Coming into the second intermission, we knew that we needed to get the next one or the game was going to be tied,” said Kane, who is the first player in the history of Canada’s National Junior Team to come in as an injury replacement after the team was already named.
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The 17-year-old Kane enjoyed an impressive selection camp in the nation’s capital two weeks ago but didn’t make the final cut. But when Tyrell went down in Canada’s first exhibition game, Kane was the next name on coach Pat Quinn’s list.
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“These last couple of weeks have just been great,” Kane said. “I thought I had a good camp but unfortunately I was let go. I was recalled back for the tournament and I was extremely excited. I’m just happy to be part of the team and am trying to chip in wherever I can.”
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Kane didn’t register a point in Canada’s 8-1 win over the Czech Republic in their opening game on Friday but he combined with Stefan Della Rovere of the Barrie Colts and Patrice Cormier of the Rimouski Oceanic to set a physical tone in the first period. That forecheck helped Canada take over the game early in the second period.
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Kane got his feet wet with a goal in the 15-0 rout of Kazakhstan on Sunday and then scored Canada’s third goal in the third period on Monday.
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Della Rovere said that he thinks their line has the ability to turn the tide in every game.
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“I think me and Cormier bring the physical aspect to the line and he brings more of an offensive component to our line,” Della Rovere said. “I think it’s great for us. He was a late asset to the team but he’s definitely not something we’re going to regret.”
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Zach Boychuk of the Lethbridge Hurricanes opened the scoring for Canada early in the third period on Monday but German goaltender Philipp Grubauer of the Belleville Bulls kept the Canadian offence in check until Jamie Benn of the Kelowna Rockets scored on a two-man powerplay early in the second. David Wolf replied for Germany in the second period but Kane counted early in the third period before John Tavares of the Oshawa Generals and Boychuk iced the game with powerplay markers.
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Ryan Ellis of the Windsor Spitfires had two assists and Chet Pickard of the Tri City Americans made 11 saves for his second straight win.
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Tavares said that Kane’s line helped set the tone again in this game.
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“I think all night long Della Rovere was in their face and was playing physical,” Tavares said. “They were getting a little gritty as well and trying to get us off our game. We stuck to our game plan and just kept playing hard. It was a good win.”
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Kane helped Canada win a gold medal at the Ivan Hlinka tournament last August and is enjoying a tremendous sophomore season with the Giants. The Vancouver native has 22 goals and 48 points in 28 games after scoring 24 goals and 41 points in 65 games as a rookie last season.
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“He’s a young man that has made some good progress with his junior team back home,” Quinn said. “He has good fundamentals to his game and has shown an ability to score this year that I don’t think a lot of people anticipated.”
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Kane will also play in the Home Hardware CHL-NHL Top Prospects Game later this month at the General Motors Centre in Oshawa. He was the top rated forward in the WHL in the NHL Central Scouting preliminary rankings and McKeen’s Hockey magazine has him pegged as sixth best prospect in the world for next June’s NHL Entry Draft.
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Canada wraps up the preliminary round of the tournament on Wednesday against the U.S.A. (7:30 p.m. Eastern on TSN and RDS).
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If the U.S. wins against Kazakhstan on Tuesday then the winner of Wednesday’s game will advance to the semi-finals on Saturday. The loser will play in the quarter finals on Friday.
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World Junior Notebook – Jamie Benn’s hat trick against Kazakhstan on Sunday was the first for a Canadian junior since Jeff Carter did it in 2004 against Finland…P.K. Subban of the Belleville Bulls was plus-6 in Sunday’s game against Kazakhstan and was on the ice for nine of Canada’s 15 goals scored…Canada has won all 10 games that it has played against Germany at the World Juniors
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Photo: Aaron Bell/CHL